The Sedalia weekly bazoo. [volume] (Sedalia, Mo.) 187?-1904, 1887-11-22
A YOUNG HEROINE.
4 Thrilling Incident Of the Franco
German War.

The French Army has lost the day!
For the last three hours the soldiers
crossed the village of Chaille. The re-
treat had commenced. Cannons, bag
gage, infantry, cavalry, all were mixed
together. The officers tried no more
to bring order and regularity among
their men, or to stop the disaster.
Towards the evening the retreat had
become helter-skelter, the vanquished
decreased in number, few cavalry
men and then-nOthing.
But in the last rays of the sun the
people of the village saw dozen Of
soldiers coming on the road. From
time to time they turned around and
fired shots at the enemy.
Far of, black spot, then two, then
twenty, then a hundred, detached
themselves on the line of the majestic
trees!
Those black spots were the Germans!
Arriving in the village, that dozen of
soldiers forming the rear guard was
Army of La Loire; they stopped.
The Captain who commanded them
had chosen a good position between
two big houses.
hurry up, boys" said he to his
men; "we will erect barricade here.
1t shall not be said that those sauer-
kraut eaters have entered this village
rs in church. Burst open the doors,
If it is necessary, and once more hurry
up"
That Captains voice was firm, and
his face EXPRESSED anger and determi-
nation; his men, old African Zouaves
and Turcos, enraged fighters. were not
apprentices in the art of building bar
ricades; in less than quarter of an
hour the street was made impossible
by cars of manure, mattresses, doors.
shutters. in fact, every thing bulky was
. employed for that purpose.
The Captain, who had picked up q
gun on the battlefield, was reloading it
when tall man with pale face ap-
preached him.
Excuse me, Captain; are you the
officer in commando"
"Yes."
believe me, sir, renounce the idea
of defending this village against an en-
envy twenty times, one hundred times,
more numerous than you are; you can
not be successful, of course, and you
will cause our village to be set on fire
by the Germans"
The Captain looked at his interloc-
utor with an immense expression of
disgust.
What do you say? You will 60
away mighty quick, or else shall send
you to"
And the Captain took the man by
the neck and was in a way to strangle
him, when a tall old man with white
hair emerged from house near by.
'Let him go, Captain, he is not
worth the strangulation; my name is
Pierre, and am a vine dresser" said
the old man addressing the officer.
Then, turning to the coward, he added:
go to your home. Monsieur the
Mayor; if you are unwilling to do your
duty, at least do not prevent others to
accomplish it. You see. Captain, that
Mayor is Monsieur from the city,
sent to us by the Imperial Government;
all his fortune is in this village, in
which he owns several buildings, and
If the Germans set them on fire he will
be ruined. l am myself in the same
case; if my cabin is destroyed 1 do not
know what will remain for my grand
daughter Jacqueline. But what do you
want, sir? France, our country, before
any thing"
The Captain was touched, and re-
moving his cap, he said to the patriot:
You are brave man, and may God
bless you"
''And an old soldier" replied the
vine dresser, Strengthening himself;
''there is my Cross of the Legion of
Honor given to me by the Emperor
himself, the great Napoleon! Now.
Captain, if you have a gun to lend me
] will show you that know how to
handle it."
AT this moment lively musketry was
heard from the other side of the barri-
cade. The Germans were coming.
The village was deserted by its in
habitants, women, children, cripples
and old people had departed, taking
with them every thing they could carry.
The able-bodied men were in the
army.